Dispenser for heterogeneous liquids



July 14, 1931. c. BURKART 1,814,123

DISPENSER FOR HETEROGENEOUS LIQUIDS Filed July 9, 1928 E. 2. INVENTOR BY CHARLES BuR/mRr A; ATTORNEY Patented July 14, 1931 CHARLES BURKART, OF BRONX, NEW YORK DISPENSER FOR HETEROGENEOUS LIQUIDS Application filed July 9,

My invention refers to the dispensation of heterogeneous liquids. In liquids of this kind the various ingredients do not readily dissolve in each other and therefore segregate into layers when at rest; or such liquids contain ingredients in colloidal suspension which have a tendency to rise to the top or to settle, according to their specific gravity. Milk is such a heterogeneous liquid which, when not disturbed for a certain period of time, will become denser near the top than on the bottom, the milk thus being poor at the bottom and rich near the top. But not only does the milk separate into the layers of different quality but the cream tends to separate almost completely from it and forms a layer on the top. If such heterogenous liquids are taken from containers by the ordinary methods, either 39 by pouring them over. the edge of the container or by drawing them by a suitable faucet, the layers are decanted, whereas it is ordinarily desirable to dispense in equitable proportionateness.

Various kinds of devices have been introduced in thepast for the proportionate dispensation of heterogeneous liquids. They consist, either of means for stirring and mixing the liquids in the container before they are drawn; or of means which provide for separately conducting proportionate parts of the various layers of the liquid to the orifice from which the mixture is to be drawn. Devices of the first kind lose their effectiveness if the operator does not duly andproperly use the'stirring and mixing apparatus. Devices of the latter kind are complex, easily disarranged, and hard to keep clean. The hardship caused by the latter impediments is readily seen from the fact that the most commonly dispensed heterogeneous liquids are intended for drinking purposes. Theyare dispensed by unskilled operators, are usually dispensed at great haste, and the proper hygiene'which is'so important today in the handling of all foods is not possible when such complicated apparatus is used.

It has been the object of my invention to overcome these disadvantages and to pro- 1928. Serial No. 291,369.

vide means of simple and rugged construction which effectively allow the proportionate dispensation of heterogeneous liquids.

A dispenser in the construction of which I have attained this object is illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which,

Figure 1 is the top view of the container in which I have embodied my invention. I Figure. 2 is the corresponding, partly sec-- tioned front elevation.

Figure 3 shows a side view of a valve I use in my invention.

Similar numerals refer to similar parts throughout the various views.

It is customary to insulate the walls of the containers for heterogeneous liquids for drinking purposes. The walls of the container 4- are therefore chosen of adequate thickness and the sectioned bottom in Figure 2 shows the usual construction comprising an inner vessel 5, an outer vessel fi and an insulating layer 7 between them. In the dispensation of drinks many types of cocks are used, to all of which my method of dis pensing may be applied. The simple cock I use for illustrating my invention consists of ashell 8 in which is seated the tapered valve 9. The shell part 8 of the cock is mounted in the wall of the container, near the bottom; it is sealed to said container the points at which it passes through the inner and outer vessels 5 and 6. The liquid is dispensed from a tap 10, the hole in which opens upon the inside of shell 8. The valve 9 is held in the shell by he tension of a compression spring 11 between the face of said shell and an adjustable nut 12 engaged upon the threaded part 13 of the valve. The end 14 of the valve is square, and fits a corresponding hole in handle lever 15 which is clamped against the shoulder 16 on said valve by a knurled-head screw 17 in the tapped hole 24 on the end of the valve. There is a hole 18 through the large end of the valve to which connects duct 19 which is angularly disposed in respect to the axis of the valve. There is a clearance cut 20 for said duct in the shell 8 on the inside of the vessel, sectorially wide enough to allow said duct to swing through 90 degrees, con-- forming to the operation of the valve. The duct 19 opens at its free end into a cup 21 the opening of which faces in the direction by rotation in which the cock is opened, i. e., a counter-clockwise rotation.

The duct 19 with the cup 21 is omitted in Figure 3. The opening of the hole 18 on the opposite side of the valve is connected by a suitable groove along the surface of the valve to a point 22, which is disposed at an angle of about 90 degrees in respect to said opening and which aligns with the hole in the tap 10 when the cock is in the position of Figures 1 and 2, which is the open position. The directions in which the handle lever 15 and the duct 19 are disposed when the cock is closed are indicated by the dotted lines in Figure 2 and the respective numerals have indices 00. In Figure 2 the container is shown filled with a heterogeneous liquid 23.

My device operates as follows:

Normally, when the cock is in the closed position, the duct stands inthe position 19X and the handle lever in position 15X. The container is filled with a heterogeneous liquid up to a level slightly below the bottom edge of cup 21X. lVhen opening the cock, the operator swings the lever in counterclockwise direction, from said horizontal position to the open vertical position 15. By the corresponding 90 degree turn of the valve the duct is brought from position 19X into the horizontal position 19, extending close to the slightly inclined bottom of the container. As the duct, with the cup on the end, is swung from the vertical into the horizontal position, the rim of cup 21 cuts the surface of the liquid; the surface layer of the liquid, to the extent of the area in which said rim cuts said layer, enters into the cup, partly overflows into theduct, and whatever does not overflow into the duct is retained in the cup while it swings downward through the liquid, an additional amount of the lower layers of the liquid entering the cup and duct during the downward movement. The opening of the hole 18 on the side of the valve opposite to the side on which the duct is connected to it, faces the inside of the shell during said 90 degree turn of the valve, and the surface of the valve adjoining said hole and the groove emanating from said hole along the surface of said valve slides in abutment on the inside of the shell. Therefore, in the closed position of the cock as well while the valve swings through the 90 degrees, there is no egress for the liquid from said hole and said groove until the other end of said groove comes to register with the hole in tap 10, after which time the liquid passes from the container, through said tap. As long as the cock is in theopenposition, the end of the groove registering withthe hole in the tap, the heterogeneous liquid flows from the tap under the pressure of the full head of the column of the liquid in the container. After the desired amount of liquid has been drawn the operator shuts off the cock by swinging the handle lever 15 in clockwise direction into its normal position 15X. The cup is now back in its normal position 21X above the liquid and the duct is filled with liquid to a point a little below the bottom edge of said cup.

The heterogeneous liquid was stirred up and mixed by the movement of the duct and cup. through it, in the process of opening and closing the cock. That mixing of the liquid assures the drawing of a proportionate mixture of the liquid when the cock is immediately operated again for drawing another specific amount of the liquid. If however a certain amount of time elapses between successive operations of the cock, the various layers of the heterogeneous liquid will again be slowly segregated. lVhen, after that segregation, the cock is operated, a certain amount of the top layer of the liquid will again enter the'cup, that: amount being defined by the area in which the rim of the cup sections the top layer of the heterogeneous liquid. A certain amount of the layers in the middle of the liquid will be torn along as the cup passes downv to the horizontal position.of the duct and an additional amount of the bottom layers enters upon the cup and duct as-themixture flows out from the duct.

There is-one important use for which I intend my novel dispenser. Thatis the drawing of milk from a container. Customarily a specific amount ofv liquid, i. e. the amount filling a glass, is drawn from the container during one operation of the cock. It is readily seen that by suitably shaping the cup and thearea of the opening of said'cup I can control the amount. of the various layers, in particular of" the creamy layer on top ofthe milk, entering uponthe cup and duct, where it is retained until the groove in the valve registers with the opening of the tap; that amount of the various layers of the milk flows out through the tap in to the glass and is; followed by milk from the bottom of the 1 container; whenthe glass is filled the-flowpf the liquids is shut off by closing the cook. The size of theduct determines the speed of the flow of theliquid-but it also influences in a certain way the amount of thevarious layers-ofmilk which isdrawn into each glass.

The resistanceofthe liquid to the motion of -the duct andcup-through it is proportionate to the-amount-of agitation of the liquid caused b'ysaidmotion and may be varied'by altering the cross-section of the duct. If I want to make thatresistancehigh and thereby increase the agitation, I'change-the cross sectionof therduct from around intoan oblong, elliptical on oval, shape the largest diameter of which is in the direction parallel to the axis of the valve. By choosing that largest diameter of the oblong cross section in a direction normal to the axis of the valve the resistance of the duct and the corresponding stirring action are decreased below that of a duct with a round cross section.

Aside from being governed in shaping the surface of the cup and the area of its entrance by the amount of the various layers of the liquid I desire to engage in it, while it moves down, I may give to that cup shapes which lend themselves to present-day manufacturing methods. The shape of the duct and cup, as illustrated, resemble the ventilators used on steamboats. But I may resort to a similar, even shape like the horn on acoustic devices. But I may also completely abandon the cup on the end of the duct and simply close or draw together the duct on the end and cut a suitable opening on its side, facing in the direction in which the duct swings downward when the cock is opened.

That opening of the duct or the cup does not have to stand in a vertical position when the cock is closed. But I may arrange it at a slight angular incline, whereby the amount of the proportion 'of the various layers entering the duct is also governed. If we consider the plane of that opening in its position parallel to the axis of the duct, as shown in the drawin s, it is readily seen that the area in which t e rim of the opening cuts the top layer when the duct is submerged increased as the height of the liquid in the container decreases during successive operations of the valve. In using my die penser for milk this increase of the area of the top layer comprised in the cup during the operation is advantageous, since the thickness of the layer of cream on top of the milk also decreases as the level of the liquid in the container descends. Thereby I assure the skimming of substantially the same amount of cream from the top of the milk upon each downward stroke of the duct thus drawing the equally rich milk into each glass filled from the container.

For hygienic reasons it is vital that all parts of my invention are readily accessible for cleansing purposes. Such cleansing should take place each time after the container is empty. To take the apparatus apart, I takeoff the knurled screw 17, whereupon the handle comes off. Then I take off nut 12, remove spring 11, and the valve together with the duct can be withdrawn from the cock on the inside of the container. My device is as readily reassembled afterwards.

The accessibility of the various parts after the apparatus has been taken apart is as important as the simplicity of the act of disassembling. F or that reason the duct seats in a hole in the valve which is open on the opposite side, and the inside of the duct can be readily cleaned. The groove on the surface of the valve along which the liquid flows is open for cleaning when the device is as sembled.

The duct is shown solidly assembled with the valve in the drawings. It may however be detachably attached to the valve by threads on the end of the duct and in the hole of the valve or it may simply be attached by a suitable push fit of the end of the duct in the hole in the valve.

If the ready access for cleaning purposes to the various parts of the device is not of great importance the construction may of course be simplified. The duct may in such a case simply merge into a hollow valve, a hole in which registers with the hole in the tap when the cock is in an open position.

Instead of attaching the cock on the front of the container, I may attach it to the side, when said container is narrow and does not ofier the width required for the movement of the duct through an arc in a plane parallel to the front of the container. The handle is still readily accessible when the cock is thus mounted on the side of the container.

Round containers are frequently used for milk and are desirable since they have the least surface for a specific amount of mill; to be stored, which serves to reduce the dissipation of heat into or from the container and of course simplifies cleaning. If I axially attach the cock to such a container, I have no room to swing my duct in said container right near the wall. In such a case Iextend the valve to a point near the center of the container, supporting it on the opposite side of said container if necessary, whereby the desired clearance for the swinging of the duct is provided. c

By attaching my cock to a round container tangential to the inside of said 0011- tainer, I may avoid the necessity of a long extension of the valve on the inside of the i container. At the same time I have almost the full inside diameter of the container available for the horizontal position of the duct so that in such an instance the ratio of the inside diameter of the container to the height of the column of the liquid may take the proportions suited to the most economic shape of a container.

Of course there may be a variation in the means operatively connecting the cup and the duct to the valve, and I do not wish to .limit the scope of this invention to a cup and duct swinging through an arc. An instance of such variation would be the following:

a vertical tube extending from There is the bottom of the container which is closed at the bottom and from which extends the tap as a side outlet. Telescopically slidable in said tube is the duct over the upper end of which extends the cup which in this case has the shape of a bell and from the top --of which extends a handle vertically upwards by the operation of which the bell is submerged, passing through the liquid down to the bottom of it. When the duct is pushed all the way down a hole on its side register with the side outlet on the tube from which the proportionately mixed heterogeneous liquid is drawn.

Bearing in mind the various methods of execution in which I can incorporate the principles of my invention I desire to have a broad protection. I claim:

1. In combination with a container for a heterogeneous liquid, a duct partly submerged in said liquid, a connection from the submerged part of said duct tothe outside of said container, an orificeon said duct above said liquid, and normally closed means submerging said duct by moving it in the direction in which said orifice opens from said duct when said means is being moved to open position.

2. In combination with a container for a heterogeneous liquid, a dispensing cock on said container, a normally closed valve in said cock extending into said container, a duct in said container radially extending from said valve and normally extending above said liquid when said valve is in closed position, and an orifice on said part of said duct extending above said liquid opening in the direction of operation of said valve, said orifice being submerged in said liquid by the movement of said valve to open position.

3. In combination with a container for a heterogeneous liquid, a dispensing cock near the bottom of said container, a normally closed valve in said cock extending into said container with an axis essentially parallel to the level of said liquid, a duct in said con tainer extending in an essentially vertical direction from said valve and partly extending above said liquid when said valve is in closed position, a lever operating said valve through 90 degrees into an open position, and a cup on the free end of said duct facing in the direction in which said valve swings into said open position, said cup being submerged in said liquid by the movement of said valve to open position.

4. In combination with a containerfor heterogeneous liquids, a duct partly submerged in said liquid, an orifice on said duct above said liquid, a normally closed dispensing cock connected to the submerged part of said duct, submerging said duct by moving it in the direction in which said orifice opens from said duct, when said cock is being moved to open position, and means for operating said cock.

5. In combination with a container for heterogeneous liquids, a dispensing cock near the bottom of said container, an outlet on said cock on the outside of said container, a

normally closed valve in said cock extending into said container with an axis essentially parallel to the level of said liquid, a lever operating said valve through 90 degrees from normally closed into open position, a

valve near its end on the inside of said container, a duct 1n one end of said hole extending in an essentially vertical direction from said valve and partly extending above said liquid when said valve is in closed position,

a cup on the free end of said duct facing in the direction in which said valve swings into open position, said cup being submerged in said liquid by the movement of said valve to open position, a cut in said cock on the inside of said container limiting the movement of said duct and cock to 90 degrees, and a groove in the surface of said valve connecting the free opening of said hole in I said valve with said outlet, when said valve is in open position.

Signed at New York in the county and State of New York, this 6th day of July,

CHARLES BURKART.

70 substantially radially disposed hole in said 

